L3Harris missile defence system moves into production

August 10, 2025
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  Golden Dome, Hypersonic weapons, Missile Defense, Space Development Agency
 
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Rendering of L3Harris’ missile-tracking satellites for the Space Development Agency. Credit: L3Harris

By Craig Langford,
Published by UK Defence Journal, 10 August 2025

L3Harris Technologies has advanced its latest missile warning and tracking system into production following the completion of Critical Design Review and Production Readiness Review for the U.S. Space Development Agency’s (SDA) Tranche 2 Tracking Layer, according to a press release.

The milestone moves the programme closer to deployment as part of a next-generation layered defence architecture designed to detect, track and target advanced missile threats in real time.

“L3Harris is committed to working closely with SDA to put proliferated missile warning and tracking capability on orbit as quickly as possible,” said Rob Mitrevski, President, Golden Dome Strategy and Integration at L3Harris. “We demonstrated that L3Harris’ production design approach achieves both of SDA’s pillars of proliferation and spiral development. Our relentless pursuit of continued design improvement at scale is how L3Harris will answer the President’s call for a robust constellation of space-based sensors that can defend our nation against complex threats.”

The Tranche 2 Tracking Layer design incorporates space and ground systems capable of global coverage with low latency. Production facilities are already manufacturing major assemblies for the space vehicles, building on previous designs from SDA’s Tranche 0 and Tranche 1 programmes, as well as the Missile Defense Agency’s Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor satellites.

L3Harris is delivering capabilities across all three tranches of SDA’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, a network of low Earth orbit satellites intended to provide near-global missile warning, tracking and defence. The company is also building eight electro-optical infrared payloads for SDA’s Fire-control On Orbit-support-to-the-war Fighter programme.

The company has invested heavily in its U.S. manufacturing base, including $250 million to expand and modernise facilities in Indiana, Florida and Massachusetts to support space-based missile defence production.

See: Original Article